Grade 'Vigilante'

[Country233]

^^Yes, I quite enjoyed Mac/Gary. He looked more rested in that episode than in Smooth Criminal

 

[Rizzoli]

I gave it a C+, because of the wasted potential, they could have really hit on the issues of vigilante-justice.

 

[talkingtocactus]

Did Lindsey really have to say "It's Kate Price!" when her name was in huuuuuuge letters under her picture? I can see looking between the picture and Hawkes(?) who showed it to her and saying her name in a sort of shocked voice, but she didn't, and it came across as if we couldn't read.... :shifty:

ugh, i forgot that bit, thanks for the reminder

The philisophical pontificating annoyed me too, and i don't think it's because that they do it, but rather how. It always comes across as one person being all disalusioned/frustrated/depressed/whatever, and the other person being all noble/by-the-book/story-from-my-past/ect.... Which i guess isn't bad in and of itself, but it never gets delivered right. .... Gary doesn't do a bad job (hell, wordless acting is kinda his thing ), but the lines he's given are so preachy it's hard to salvage.

absolutely right, i think the fact that they are philosophically pontificating in every ep now is getting a bit ridiculous. i know a lot of people find sanctimonious mac difficult to bear, and as much as i think gary is wonderful and does his best with what is often shoddy material, i can see their point and now the other characters seem to be doing it more and more it's getting worse. i mean, i can kind of understand it a bit more from mac what with him being the boss etc, y'know, as a leader type character it would be more in keeping for him to have these somewhat opinionated little spiels.

i think also it ties in with the mallets - we as an audience aren't so thick that we can't work out these things ourselves. we can form opinions on the goings on within the show on our own. in this ep for instance i'm sure some people watching thought "oh good for the vigilante, the raping scum deserved it" and others thought "oh, vigilante justice is always wrong, i hope they can stop them" etc etc, and were even able to work out the more subtle nuances between those positions. but no, just in case we were too damn stupid, we had to have each side of the argument spelled out for us.

surely in a show like this the job of the show isn't to tell us what to think but to lay out the evidence and the physical factual conclusions and let us draw conclusions from those? if i wanted a preachy moralist lecture i'd go to church (and believe me i never, ever go to church). i'm sure this never happened so much in older eps - sure a little bit but not on this scale. i was watching old csi vegas the other day and the same thing - there was the odd little comment on the behaviours of certain characters but no preaching.

Hawkes talked about how his girlfriend was raped and how he had thought of killing the guy, but he didn't show any anger, disgust, shame, passion, nothing.

wow, i can't believe i'm indirectly arguing for the writers here.... because good material will never come across as such if it's not acted with conviction and complete dedication. But borderline material is insufferable if not done right, and i think this latter is part of the problem. Which was why i was shocked i was irritated with Adam, because AJ does a brilliant job!

y'know sometimes i wonder if the actors are almost as fed up with this stuff as we are, because the material is pretty bad a lot of the time and it's almost like they're going through the motions, and frankly if i were an actor and i were told to deliver those lines i doubt my heart would be in it either. it's a far cry from the csiny of the past.

 

[Jade_Nolan]

y'know sometimes i wonder if the actors are almost as fed up with this stuff as we are, because the material is pretty bad a lot of the time and it's almost like they're going through the motions, and frankly if i were an actor and i were told to deliver those lines i doubt my heart would be in it either. it's a far cry from the csiny of the past.

I think you have a point, but on the other hand, Hawkes' stuff in that scene could have had potential. His position and real life experience he told Lindsey was very sympathetic from a personal standpoint, and could have had a lot of emotional weight. But it wasn't just flat, he came across as almost amused, and the whole thing was just awful. But i digress a bit to my point i made over on the 'most unfavorite character' thread about the acting quality. Sure a lot of the writing is shite, and if i was a cast member i couldn't say that i wouldn't have a i-don't-give-a-crap attitude at least part of the time. But bloody hell, at least try a little on the parts where they are given stuff to work with...! :scream:

*headdesk* i think i'm as fed up with the poor acting from some of the cast members as i am with the writers, and i think the two feed off each other and create a vicious cycle.....

 

[Geeno]

I gave it a C+, because of the wasted potential, they could have really hit on the issues of vigilante-justice.

I gave it an A but you're right. There is so much potential if they went deeper into the issue. I remember a really good episode of 'Cold Case' titled 'Justice' I don't want to spoil everybody in case you want to watch it but here's the summary for those who just want to know:

Spoiler: summary

The team re-opens the 1982 case of a well-liked young man who was shot to death after being accused of date rape by several female college students.

The team has come up with several suspects including a group of female students who were date-raped by the victim, a rookie female sex-crime cop and many others. The detectives question each and have their alibies checked.

The investigation goes on and on until the detectives find out that the girls are lying. They are together the night of the murder and are covering for each other. The detectives find a way to make the girls turn on each other. Until the interrogation gets heated and emotional.

The girls say they cornered the man that night and they wanted him to confess about the rapes while pointing the gun at him. The man confessed. But they want more - they want him dead. However the gun is passed to each other. Nobody has the guts to pull the trigger. They swear they left the man alive and the gun in the trash can.

Lily, lead detective, notices an inconsistency in their story that lead them to one of the rape victim's little brother who is now a lawyer. The sister is shocked. She says it's impossible; he's with them and he couldn't do it.

Lily asks him what happened that night. He is not talking. So she tells him what she thinks happened. She says he was at the scene of the murder; he wanted revenge for his sister's rape; he picked the gun but then the man saw him and walked towards him.

The brother is about to tell the truth - that he shot the man - but her sister interrupts and begs him not to talk. But Lily continues the story for him. She changes her tone and suggests that the man was going to attack him; that he's just a little boy and didn't have a choice but to shoot him; that it was self-defense. The brother seems to be reluctant. Her sister begs him to say that that's what really happened. He then confirms Lily's story. He says he was outside his sister's room when the man was raping her; he waited for the oppurtunity to revenge; he got it; he confronted the man after his sister and her friends left the man at the scene; he pointed the gun at him and shot him right away.

The case is closed as justified murder. The brother isn't charged with anything.

I'm not good at telling stories. :lol: But that's almost it. But it's much better if you watch the episode.

 

[Rizzoli]

I think I've seen that Cold Case episode, the CC people definitely did a better job than the CSI:NY people

 

[talkingtocactus]

a lot of the writing is shite

haha you're such a mancunian :lol:

i was a cast member i couldn't say that i wouldn't have a i-don't-give-a-crap attitude at least part of the time. But bloody hell, at least try a little on the parts where they are given stuff to work with...! :scream:

*headdesk* i think i'm as fed up with the poor acting from some of the cast members as i am with the writers, and i think the two feed off each other and create a vicious cycle.....

i think it's definitely a vicious circle (as we say this side of the pond ) - i know if i were one of the cast, when i wasn't jumping gary :angel::beer:, i'd be pretty blasé about it too - not so much in the earlier seasons but now they all seem to be rehashes, half hearted, preachy blah. and if i were an actor i'd want to be stretched at least a little bit. otherwise wha'ts the point? you might as well sit behind a desk.

 

[~Sarah~]

This is a perfect example of something that could have been stuck on with another case earlier in the season and then the case (Prospect Park Rapist) wasn't solved yada yada yada and then in this episode we find out who the rapist is, rather than just have a serial rapist turn up dead out of the blue.

 

[Jade_Nolan]

a lot of the writing is shite

haha you're such a mancunian :lol:

and create a vicious cycle.....

i think it's definitely a vicious circle (as we say this side of the pond )

Are you trying to say i'm a geographical linguistic oddity? :lol: And mancunian?! noooooo!!!! although to be fair, i simply hate manU with a passion...! :angryrazz:

i know if i were one of the cast, when i wasn't jumping gary :angel: :beer:

:devil: *cough* no comment... :devil:

:angel: *tries to convince self that halo is still in place* :guffaw::guffaw: *gives up* who am i kidding....?! :devil::guffaw:

 

[talkingtocactus]

a lot of the writing is shite

haha you're such a mancunian :lol:

i think it's definitely a vicious circle (as we say this side of the pond )

Are you trying to say i'm a geographical linguistic oddity? :lol: And mancunian?! noooooo!!!! although to be fair, i simply hate manU with a passion...! :angryrazz:

so do most self respecting mancunians

and no, not you specifically but it is a linguistic oddity that over here it's a circle and over there it's a cycle. it also means you guys suffer a limit on your visual gag repertoire.

i know if i were one of the cast, when i wasn't jumping gary :angel: :beer:

:devil: *cough* no comment... :devil:

:angel: *tries to convince self that halo is still in place* :guffaw::guffaw: *gives up* who am i kidding....?! :devil::guffaw:

indeed

 

[Robin]

Really liked when the woman called Lindsay out for basically being a self-centered wench. Could have gone without Lindsay trying to get Jo to tell her that she wasn't a self-centered wench. Oh poor Lindsay feels bad about herself.

I also don't understand Lindsay's indignation that rapists were being killed. Yeah...she's a cop but she only seems to realize that when it suits her. Yes, killing the bastards technically is the wrong thing to do, but anyone who has been raped, know someone who has been raped, or know what rape is would be tempted to do the same thing if given the chance.

Even though it was basically a Lindsay centered episode, it was still entertaining.

 

[GregNickRyanFan]

Decent episode.

I still don't know why they didn't realize the caller was using a voice changer. Haven't they ever seen the movie "Scream"? It sounded just like that lol.

Lindsay and Adam calling Mac with it was cute though.

I liked Jo's talk with Lindsay. And the repeat of the line "we meet people on the worst day of their lives".

Don: She hits hard.
Lindsay: What you mean for a girl?
Don: No, I mean for anyone.

The lawyer being the partner was something I didn't see coming.

 

[Grissom rules]

Another enjoyable episode!!!This season gets better and better!!!

A- from me...

 

[spunky86]

I have to say that I agree with Hawkes, those women did the community a favor. And Lindsey as a woman and a mother saying that she's a cop first was the most self righteous statement of the night.

 

[Ceindreadh]

I have to say that I agree with Hawkes, those women did the community a favor. And Lindsey as a woman and a mother saying that she's a cop first was the most self righteous statement of the night.

The problem is though, those women didn't have the right to commit murder.

And while the second victim may have been a scumbag who should still have been serving time, the fact remains that he *had* served the time he had been sentenced to.

Those women were sloppy enough to start with, sooner or later they were going to target somebody who *hadn't* commited the crime they were accused of. That's why vigilanteism is illegal.